Who knew Universal’s Volcano Bay was the happening place to visit this fall season?! If you’re looking for a place to kick back, relax, and party with Scooby-Doo and the gang, we have just the thing for you.

Volcano Bay Nights is an exclusive, limited-capacity event running every Friday through October 31st. It’s a night for fans to enjoy attractions, exclusive food, and unique experiences. We recently got to experience the event early, and we have so much to share with you!

Volcano Bay Nights is an exclusive event that happens Friday nights through October 31st, making it the perfect nighttime activity for the fall season. It’s filled with all sorts of exclusive experiences, including:

• Shorter wait times on all attractions, including TeAwa the Fearless River, Ko’okiri Body Plunge, Krakatau Aqua Coaster, and more
• Character meet-and-greets, including Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, Velma, Fred, Daphne, and one of the villains from the animated series, Ghost Clown
• A Beach Bash with a live DJ, games, and activities for the whole family
• Complimentary Coca-Cola Freestyle souvenir cup
• Specialty-themed island treats

Our night kicked off at check-in, where we were given an event bracelet and a souvenir cup. Each person in attendance gets a cup, which is a nice perk considering these cups are practically $20. Event tickets are valid for early Volcano Bay park access starting at 4 PM, but the event officially begins at 7 PM.

Cabanas are available for rent during these nights, and a multitude of attractions are open with significantly lower wait times than you’d experience on a normal day.

While you’re here, you’ll also run into some fan-favorite characters. The whole Mystery Machine gang is at the beach, so you see Fred, Velma, and Daphne, along with Shaggy and Scooby. They were enjoying Universal Volcano Bay under the stars as the DJ played live music in the beach area. It was a MOMENT. We loved it.

It was SO fun and interactive; it’s not every day you get to see Scooby and the gang playing in the sand!

The famous Mystery Machine was set up for photo ops, too, which was SO cool — especially under the night sky! We spotted Shaggy and Scooby meeting fans at regular intervals throughout the night, along with Velma, Fred, and Daphne.

Villain alert! Remember the iconic Ghost Clown villain from the animated series? Even the Ghost Clown paid a visit to Volcano Bay Nights! During our visit, he roamed the park (and wasn’t available for traditional meet-and-greets), so keep your eyes peeled! We spotted him by the pathway around Kohola Reef.

The event also has tons of exclusive food and drinks to try, including sandwiches…

…and Crispy Pepperoni Tots, so make sure you’re coming hungry…

…and make lots of room for dessert as well! Yep, we got CHURROS. Your ticket comes with access to two complimentary snacks: the Golden Pineapple and Coconut Popcorn and the Island Churro Bites. SCORE!

Like any exclusive event, there’s bound to be exclusive merchandise. The theme of the merchandise is Scooby-Doo, going along with the themed character meet-and-greets.

You’ll have the chance to get a ton of items like plushes, tumblers, and hoodies featuring the Mystery Machine gang.

We met quite a few people here who have never been to Volcano Bay Nights, and they loved it (so did we!). We heard lots of chatter among guests saying they would do it again. Tickets are $99 per person and get you access to the park from 7 PM to 11 PM. 

If you’re not into Halloween or scary things, this is a fun fall activity that offers great value! Plus, you get a free souvenir cup that is refillable all night, which we mentioned before, is valued at around $20.

This event felt very geared towards Millennials and Gen X-ers, especially with the retro Scooby Doo characters out and about. The DJ was playing things like “Monster Mash,” “Jeepers Creepers,” “YMCA,” and “Funkytown.” Talk about a blast from the past!

This is definitely going to be a shot of nostalgia, and we saw many people partying at the beach, soaking in the vibes, and enjoying the music while in the water. Whether you’re there to knock out a ton of rides with low waits or plan to vibe out on the beach, there are endless ways to enjoy this event.

If nostalgia is totally your thing, and you’re into the old Scooby Doo cartoons, COME TO THIS EVENT. You’ll get some really good quality, one-on-one time with these characters, and you might even spot a rare villain!

For more theme park news and updates, be sure to stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog.

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Would you try this event? Let us know in the comments!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Universal to attend their media preview of Volcano Bay Nights. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ